It is essential to carry the appropriate backpack for trekking. Some treks have teahouses throughout while others require camping and the necessary equipment. The size of your backpack depends primarily on whether or not you have porters on your trip. Those with porters usually carry a daypack with water, snacks, a camera, and rain gear. Those without porters will need a larger pack to fit all of their personal supplies and sleeping equipment.
Sometimes packing too much or too little can spoil your trip. So you need to know how much is too much or too little. The number of items of clothing you should pack will depend on how long or at which time you will be trekking. For example, for the Everest Base Camp trek, you will need more clothes than Poon Hill trek, as it is a much longer trek.
In Nepal, most of the trekking starts from the lower altitude in moderate temperatures to higher altitudes in cold temperatures. Thus, it is better to do dress in layers so that you can change your clothing with the variation in temperatures.
Normally, you start your day trekking in a light sweater or tracksuits. During sunny days, you may feel comfortable in T-shirts and shorts. Then, later on, you may have to put on a tracksuit, down jacket, warm pants, hats, and gloves as the temperature falls.
These items are recommended for a typical multi-day trek in Nepal.
Table of Contents
Sleeping Equipment
- Tent (necessary for treks with camping)
- Sleeping bag
- Sleeping pad
- Silk liner
Clothing
- Long-sleeved synthetic fleece (windproof material, if possible)
- Thermal underwear
- Comfortable hiking trousers (loose fitting)
- Shorts and trousers, or skirts
- 2 pairs of warm wool-blend socks
- 2 pairs of running socks or liner socks
- Proper hiking boots
- Running shoes and flip-flops
- 2-3 t-shirts
Cold Weather
- Long underwear/Wool thermals
- Sweater
- Fleece
- Waterproof jacket and pants
- Heavyweight pants for high elevations (also good for camp)
- Heavy down jacket (can be rented in Kathmandu)
- Winter hat
- Winter gloves
Accessories backpack for trekking
- Water purification (pump, tablets, or SteriPen; bring from home)
- Water bottles (at least 3 liters total capacity)
- Baseball cap (the sun is strong at all elevations)
- Hiking poles (lessen the impact on your joints)
- Sunglasses (essential when you cross snow line)
- Headlamp with extra batteries
- Reading materials
- Journal and pens
- Camera with extra batteries
- Daypack (for your rain jacket, snacks, camera, etc.)
- Heavy-duty duffle bag (preferred by porters)
- Gators (many people wear them but they are not mandatory)
- compass
- Binoculars
- GPS
- insect repellants (for lower elevations)
- pocket knife
- Candles and lighter (for lodge)
- Stove and fuel
- Cooking, eating and drinking utensils
Personal Supplies
- Sunscreen
- Hand sanitizer
- Toiletries (toothbrush, toothpaste, deodorant, floss, etc.)
- Biodegradable bar soap
- Face/body wipes
- Biodegradable washing liquid
- Throat lozenges, lip balm
- Medications (Ibuprofen, others if necessary)
Extras
- Duct tape (fixes just about everything, at least temporarily. To avoid carrying an entire roll wrap the desired amount around a pencil)
- Food and water (for the very remote trekking areas)
- First aid kit (with moleskin for blisters)
- Extra passport photos and photocopies of your passport (may need for pass/permit)
Also read: 12 Tips for Monsoon Trekking with bonus tips